Barbie approached us to create a social and/or digital activation to celebrate her 60th anniversary.

Barbie’s history is rife with controversy and her past often overshadows the brand’s efforts at inclusivity. In 2015, Barbie introduced diverse body types, skin tones, and hair textures. This created new relevance for the brand, and as Barbie looked toward 60, the brand was healthier than it had been in years.

Despite these efforts, many parents still saw the brand as antiquated and not in line with their beliefs. We felt Barbie’s anniversary called for more than a celebration of the brand’s past. It demanded a conversation about the future, designed to inspire the next generation of girls.

With this in mind, we steered Barbie toward a new ambition: create an inspiring experience for girls, using International Women’s Day as the backdrop.

Today's girls have the power to shatter the last glass ceilings. They can be The Last Generation of Firsts. Instead of waiting for the world to change, they will be the ones to change it.

To communicate this to girls, we filled a room with hundreds of empty Barbie boxes, each marking a different glass ceiling. They were global, intersectional, personal, and even custom.

In their emptiness, girls could imagine themselves shattering those glass ceilings.

But, it was a life-sized, digital doll box that truly set imaginations racing. It transformed to recognize each girl’s ambitions, allowing her to be fully immersed in the power of her own potential.

A similar social AR filter rolled out in 15 countries and showed girls around the world the future is not only female - it’s theirs for the taking.

As a figure that has achieved several female ‘firsts’ of her own, Barbie could credibly inspire girls to dream big. We steered Barbie to create a conversation around International Women’s Day. We knew that girls and parents who engaged in meaningful conversation with the brand would become advocates of its vision.

But, engaging girls required us to understand their worlds. Many of the standard social or digital channels weren’t available: US and EU laws restrict brands from marketing to kids in our target audience (6 to 10 years old). While many are still developing written skills, more than 90% own a tablet--they learn to scroll and tap before they learn to write. And unlike older generations, they see no distinction between the physical and digital worlds.

Rather than rely on parents as messengers, we designed an experience that engaged girls directly in a language they’re familiar with.

One day after International Women's Day, in the heart of New York City, we hosted an experience where girls, their parents, and influencers showed up to celebrate Barbie's message of being part of the Last Generation of Firsts.

For it to resonate with and inspire girls, we knew they had to feel it as well as see it. In the entry, a mirrored wall hinted that this exhibit was about them, rather than Barbie. We then revealed endless shelves lined with empty doll boxes. Each was labeled with a diverse, global, intersectional or even personal glass ceiling.

The focal point of the room was a digital Barbie Box powered by an iPad web app. A discussion about each girl’s interests and ambitions matched her with the perfect first. And when she stepped inside the box, it transformed with her name, her first, photographic background and even the sound of applause.

We expected 1800 attendees and hosted over 6000. More than 1000 attendees stepped into the box to experience their own “first” during the event.

A post-event survey of attendees indicated that the experience successfully engaged them in the purpose: 62% said the event had a positive or very positive effect on their perception of Barbie as a role model for girls, and 80% are confident that today’s girls will be the Last Generation of Firsts. One parent said “the Last Generation of Firsts--that is a pretty darn cool concept. Now we have to make it a reality.”

The event also re-established Barbie’s relevance and improved people’s perception of the brand: 60% said they are more likely to consider Barbie as a brand for children they know. One attendee noted, “I learned to have an open mind about a brand that has evolved. It was refreshing.”